Bendable display device

ABSTRACT

A display device includes a substrate having a first area, a second area, and a bending area disposed between the first area and the second area. An inner wiring is disposed in the first area. An outer wiring is disposed in the second area. An interlayer insulating layer covers the inner wiring and the outer wiring, and includes a first contact hole. A conductive layer is disposed on the interlayer insulating layer, and is connected to the inner wiring or the outer wiring through the first contact hole. An inorganic protective layer covers at least a portion of the conductive layer and includes an inorganic insulating material.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application claims the benefit of Korean Patent Application No.10-2017-0099784, filed on Aug. 7, 2017, in the Korean IntellectualProperty Office, the disclosure of which is incorporated by referenceherein in its entirety.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present disclosure relates to a display device, and morespecifically to a bendable display device.

DISCUSSION OF THE RELATED ART

A display device may be used in a wide variety of devices. Modern flatpanel display devices, such as liquid crystal displays (LCDs) andorganic light emitting diode (OLED) displays tend to be thin andlightweight, as compared to older styles of display devices. Morerecently, many flat panel display devices have the ability to be bent atsome point during manufacturing so as to obtain a desired shape.

SUMMARY

A display device includes a substrate having a first area, a secondarea, and a bending area disposed between the first area and the secondarea. An inner wiring is disposed in the first area. An outer wiring isdisposed in the second area. An interlayer insulating layer covers theinner wiring and the outer wiring, and includes a first contact hole. Aconductive layer is disposed on the interlayer insulating layer, and isconnected to the inner wiring or the outer wiring through the firstcontact hole. An inorganic protective layer covers at least a portion ofthe conductive layer and includes an inorganic insulating material.

A display device includes a display area configured to display an image.The display area includes a plurality of pixels. A non-display area isadjacent to the display area. The non-display area includes a bendingarea. A wiring is disposed in the non-display area. An interlayerinsulating layer includes a first contact hole corresponding to thewiring and includes an opening corresponding to the bending area. Aconductive layer is disposed on the interlayer insulating layer, and isconnected to the wiring through the first contact hole. An inorganicprotective layer is disposed on the conductive layer, and covers atleast a portion of the conductive layer corresponding to the firstcontact hole. The inorganic protective layer includes an inorganicinsulating material.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

A more complete appreciation of the present disclosure and many of theattendant aspects thereof will be readily obtained as the same becomesbetter understood by reference to the following detailed descriptionwhen considered in connection with the accompanying drawings, wherein:

FIG. 1 is a plan view illustrating a display device according to anexemplary embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view illustrating a portion of a display deviceaccording to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a display device accordingto an exemplary embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a display device accordingto an exemplary embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 5 is a plan view illustrating a portion of a wiring unit of adisplay device according to an exemplary embodiment of the presentinvention;

FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view illustrating the wiring unit takenalong a line VI-VI′ of FIG. 5;

FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view illustrating the wiring unit takenalong a line VII-VII′ of FIG. 5;

FIG. 8 is a plan view illustrating a portion of a wiring unit of adisplay device according to an exemplary embodiment of the presentinvention;

FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view illustrating the wiring unit takenalong a line IX-IX′ of FIG. 8;

FIG. 10 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a display deviceaccording to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 11 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a display deviceaccording to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 12 is a plan view illustrating a portion of a wiring unit of adisplay device according to an exemplary embodiment of the presentinvention;

FIG. 13 is a cross-sectional view illustrating the wiring unit takenalong a line XIII-XIII′ of FIG. 12;

FIG. 14 is a cross-sectional view illustrating the wiring unit takenalong a line XIV-XIV′ of FIG. 12;

FIG. 15 is a cross-sectional view illustrating the wiring unit takenalong a line XV-XV′ of FIG. 12;

FIG. 16 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a non-display area of adisplay device according to an exemplary embodiment of the presentinvention;

FIG. 17 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a non-display area of adisplay device according to an exemplary embodiment of the presentinvention; and

FIG. 18 is a plan view illustrating a wiring unit of a display deviceaccording to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

In describing exemplary embodiments of the present disclosureillustrated in the drawings, specific terminology is employed for sakeof clarity. However, the present disclosure is not intended to belimited to the specific terminology so selected, and it is to beunderstood that each specific element includes all technical equivalentswhich operate in a similar manner.

Like reference numerals in the specification and the drawings may denotelike or corresponding elements, and to the extent that repeateddescription thereof is omitted, it may be assumed that the omitteddescription is at least similar to descriptions of correspondingelements found elsewhere in the specification.

It will be understood that although the terms “first”, “second”, etc.may be used herein to describe various components, these components areonly used to distinguish one component from another.

It will be understood that when a layer, region, or component isreferred to as being “formed on,” or “disposed on” another layer,region, or component, it can be directly on or intervening layers,regions, or components may be present.

Sizes of elements in the drawings may be exaggerated for convenience ofexplanation.

It will be understood that when a layer, region, or component isreferred to as being “connected” to another layer, region, or component,it may be directly connected to the other layer, region, or there may beother layers, regions, or components interposed therebetween.

A display device is an apparatus displaying an image. The display devicemay be a liquid crystal display, an electrophoretic display, an organiclight-emitting display, an inorganic light-emitting display, a fieldemission display, a surface-conduction electron-emitter display, aplasma display, a cathode ray display, etc.

Hereinafter, though an organic light-emitting display is exemplarilydescribed as a display device, the display device according to thepresent disclosure is not limited thereto and various types of displaydevices may be used.

FIG. 1 is a plan view of a display device according to an exemplaryembodiment of the preset invention, and FIG. 2 is a perspective view ofa portion of a display device according to an exemplary embodiment ofthe preset invention.

Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, a substrate 100 may include a bending areaBA extending in a first direction (a Y-direction). The bending area BAmay be disposed between a first area 1A and a second area 2A along asecond direction (an X-direction) crossing the first direction.

The substrate 100 may be bent about a bending axis BAX extending in thefirst direction. Though FIG. 2 illustrates that the substrate 100 isbent at the same curvature radius around the bending axis BAX, theinvention is not limited thereto. The substrate 100 may be bent aroundthe bending axis BAX and a curvature radius thereof may be varied.

The substrate 100 may include various flexible or bendable materials,e.g., polymer resins such as polyethersulphone (PES), polyacrylate(PAR), polyetherimide (PEI), polyethylene naphthalate (PEN),polyethylene terephthalate (PET), polyphenylene sulfide (PPS),polyarylate (PAR), polyimide (PI), polycarbonate (PC), and/or celluloseacetate propionate (CAP). The substrate 100 may have a single-layered ormulti-layered structure including the above materials. The multi-layeredstructure may further include an inorganic layer.

The first area 1A may include a display area DA. As illustrated in FIG.1, the first area 1A may include the display area DA and a portion of anon-display area NDA outside the display area DA. The second area 2A andthe bending area BA may include the non-display area NDA. The displayarea DA of the display device may correspond to a portion of the firstarea 1A, and the non-display area NDA may correspond to the rest of thefirst area 1A, the second area 2A, and the bending area BA.

The display area DA includes pixels P and may display an image. A pixelP may be connected to signal lines such as a scan line SL extending inthe first direction and a data line DL extending in the seconddirection. In FIG. 1, a pixel P may be connected to power linestransferring a direct-current (DC) signal such as a driving power lineand a common power line.

A pixel P may include electronic elements such as a thin film transistor(TFT) and a storage capacitor electrically connected to the signal linesand power lines, and an organic light-emitting device (OLED) connectedto the electronic elements. A pixel P may emit, for example, red, green,blue, or white light through the OLED. The pixel P may be understoodherein as being a pixel emitting red, green, or blue light, or a pixelemitting red, green, blue, or white light. The display area DA may becovered by an encapsulation layer 400 so as to protect the display areaDA from external air or moisture. In the case where a display elementprovided to a pixel P is an OLED, the TFT may include a driving TFT anda switching TFT, and may further include an additional TFT in additionto the two TFTs depending on design of the pixel P.

The non-display area NDA may include first and second scan drivers 11and 12, a terminal unit 20, a driving voltage supply line 30, a commonvoltage supply line 40, and a wiring unit 50.

The first and second scan drivers 11 and 12 may be disposed in the firstarea 1A. For example, the first and second scan drivers 11 and 12 may bespaced apart from each other with the display area DA therebetween. Thefirst and second scan drivers 11 and 12 may generate and transfer a scansignal to each pixel P through the scan line SL. In FIG. 1, two scandrivers are disposed, however, the present invention is not limited tousing exactly two scan drivers. For example, one scan driver may bedisposed on one side of the display area DA.

The terminal unit 20 may be disposed at one end of the non-display areaNDA and includes terminals 21, 22, 23, and 24. The terminal unit 20might not be exposed by an insulating layer and be exposed and connectedto a flexible film 60 such as a flexible printed circuit board includinga driver integrated circuit (IC) 70. FIG. 1 illustrates a chip on film(COF) type driver IC in which the driver IC 70 is connected through theflexible film 60, however, the present invention is not limited theretoand other configurations may be used. For example, the driver IC 70 maybe a chip on panel (COP) type driver IC in which the driver IC 70 isdirectly disposed on the terminal unit 20 of the substrate 100.

The driving voltage supply line 30 may provide a driving voltage ELVDDto pixels P. The driving voltage supply line 30 may be disposed in thenon-display area NDA such that the driving voltage supply line 30 isadjacent to one side of the display area DA.

The common voltage supply line 40 may provide a common voltage ELVSS topixels P. The common voltage supply line 40 may be disposed in thenon-display area NDA to partially surround the display area DA.

The wiring unit 50 may include inner wirings 210 disposed in the firstarea 1A, outer wirings 220 disposed in the second area 2A, andconductive layers 230, which are bridge wirings electrically connectingthe inner wirings 210 to the outer wirings 220. Each inner wiring 210may be electrically connected to a signal line of the display area DA,and each outer wiring 220 may be electrically connected to the terminalunit 20 of the non-display area NDA.

The conductive layer 230 may extend from the first area 1A to the secondarea 2A across the bending area BA. The conductive layer 230 may crossthe bending axis BAX described with reference to FIG. 2. FIG. 3illustrates that the conductive layer 230, which is a bridge wiring,extends perpendicularly with respect to the bending axis BAX, however,the present invention is not limited to this particular arrangement. Forexample, the conductive layer 230 may obliquely extend at apredetermined angle with respect to the bending axis BAX, or extendwhile having a curved shape, a zigzag shape, etc., rather than in astraight line shape.

An organic layer 160 may be disposed in at least the bending area BA.The organic layer 160 at least partially overlaps the conductive layer230, one side of the organic layer 160 may extend over the first area1A, and the other side of the organic layer 160 may extend over thesecond area 2A. In an exemplary embodiment of the present invention, theorganic layer 160 may be disposed below the conductive layer 230, forexample, disposed between the substrate 100 and the conductive layer230, and may surround a contact portion between the conductive layer 230and the inner wiring 210, and a contact portion between the conductivelayer 230 and the outer wiring 220.

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of the display device according to anexemplary embodiment of the present invention, taken along lines A-A′and B-B′ of FIG. 1.

Referring to FIG. 3, an OLED 300 as a display element may be disposed inthe display area DA. The OLED 300 may be electrically connected to firstand second TFTs T1 and T2 and a storage capacitor Cst. The first TFT T1includes a first semiconductor layer Act1 and a first gate electrode G1.The second TFT T2 includes a second semiconductor layer Act2 and asecond gate electrode G2.

The first semiconductor layer Act1 and the second semiconductor layerAct2 may each include amorphous silicon, polycrystalline silicon, anoxide semiconductor, or an organic semiconductor material. The firstsemiconductor layer Act1 includes a channel region C1, and a sourceregion S1 and a drain region D1 respectively disposed at opposite sidesof the channel region C1. The second semiconductor layer Act2 includes achannel region C2, and a source region S2 and a drain region D2respectively disposed at opposite sides of the channel region C2. Thesource regions S1 and S2 and the drain regions D1 and D2 of the firstand second semiconductor layers Act1 and Act2 may be respectivelyunderstood as source electrodes and drain electrodes of the first andsecond TFTs T1 and T2.

The first gate electrode G1 and the second gate electrode G2 mayrespectively at least partially overlap the channel region C1 of thefirst semiconductor layer Act1 and the channel region C2 of the secondsemiconductor layer Act2 with a gate insulating layer 120 therebetween.The first and second gate electrodes G1 and G2 may each be a singlelayer or may each have multiple layers including a conductive materialincluding at least one of Mo, Al, Cu, and Ti. FIG. 3 illustrates thatthe first and second gate electrodes G1 and G2 are disposed on the samelayer, however, the present invention is not limited thereto. Forexample, the first and second gate electrodes G1 and G2 may berespectively disposed on different layers. FIG. 3 illustrates top-gatetype TFTs in which the first and second gate electrodes G1 and G2 arerespectively disposed over the first and second semiconductor layersAct1 and Act2, however, the present invention is not limited to thisparticular arrangement. For example, TFTs may be bottom-gate type TFTsin which the first and second gate electrodes G1 and G2 are disposedbelow the first and second semiconductor layers Act1 and Act2.

The storage capacitor Cst may include a first storage capacitor plateCE1 and a second storage capacitor plate CE2 which at least partiallyoverlap each other. The first and second storage capacitor plates CE1and CE2 may include a low-resistance conductive material including atleast one of Mo, Al, Cu, and Ti.

The storage capacitor Cst may at least partially overlap the first TFTT1, and the first TFT T1 may be a driving TFT. Though FIG. 3 illustratesthat the storage capacitor Cst at least partially overlaps the first TFTT1 and so the first storage capacitor plate CE1 serves as the first gateelectrode G1 of the first TFT T1, the embodiment is not limited thereto.In another embodiment, the storage capacitor Cst might not overlap thefirst TFT T1.

A buffer layer 110 may be disposed between the substrate 100 and thefirst and second TFTs T1 and T2. The buffer layer 110 may include aninorganic insulating material. For example, the buffer layer 110 may bea single layer or multiple layers including at least one of SiON, SiOx,and SiNx.

The gate insulating layer 120 may be disposed between the first andsecond gate electrodes G1 and G2 and the first and second semiconductorlayers Act1 and Act2. The gate insulating layer 120 may include aninorganic insulating layer. For example, the gate insulating layer 120may be a single layer or multiple layers including at least one of SiON,SiOx, and SiNx.

The first and second TFTs T1 and T2 may be covered by an interlayerinsulating layer 130. FIG. 3 illustrates that the interlayer insulatinglayer 130 includes first and second interlayer insulating layers 131 and132. The first interlayer insulating layer 131 may be disposed on thefirst and second TFTs T1 and T2 and/or on the first storage capacitorplate CE1. The second interlayer insulating layer 132 may be disposed onthe second storage capacitor plate CE2. Each of the first and secondinterlayer insulating layers 131 and 132 may be a single layer ormultiple layers including at least one of SiON, SiOx, and SiNx. In anexemplary embodiment of the present invention, the first interlayerinsulating layer 131 may be a single layer including SiNx, and thesecond interlayer insulating layer may be multiple layers including SiNxand SiOx. The interlayer insulating layer 130 is described herein asbeing an insulating layer disposed between the inner wiring 210 and theconductive layer 230 and/or the outer wiring 220 and the conductivelayer 230, and may be understood to represent the first interlayerinsulating layer 131 or represent the second interlayer insulating layer132, or represent the first and second interlayer insulating layers 131and 132.

The data line DL may be disposed on the interlayer insulating layer 130.The data line DL may be electrically connected to a switching TFT andmay provide a data signal. The data line DL may be a single layer ormultiple layers including at least one of Al, Cu, Ti, and an alloythereof. In an embodiment, the data line DL may be three layersincluding Ti/Al/Ti.

The data line DL may be covered by an inorganic protective layer PVX.The inorganic protective layer PVX may be a single layer or multiplelayers including SiNx and SiOx. The inorganic protective layer PVX maycover and protect some of wirings exposed from the non-display area NDA.Wirings formed simultaneously with the data line DL during the sameprocess may be exposed at a portion of the substrate 100 (for example, aportion of the non-display area NDA). The exposed portion of the wiringsmay be damaged by an etchant used when a pixel electrode 310 ispatterned. Since the inorganic protective layer PVX covers the data lineDL and at least a portion of the wirings simultaneously formed with thedata line DL, the wirings may be prevented from being damaged during apatterning process of the pixel electrode 310.

A driving voltage line PL and the data line DL may be disposed indifferent layers, for example, with one layer being above the otherlayer. A first planarization insulating layer 141 may be disposedbetween the driving voltage line PL and the data line DL.

The driving voltage line PL may be a single layer or multiple layersincluding at least one of Al, Cu, Ti, and an alloy thereof. According toan exemplary embodiment of the present invention, the driving voltageline PL may be a triple layer including Ti/Al/Ti. FIG. 3 illustratesthat the driving voltage line PL is disposed on only the firstplanarization insulating layer 141, however, the present invention isnot limited thereto. For example, the driving voltage line PL may beconnected to a lower additional voltage line that is formedsimultaneously with the data line DL through a through hole formed inthe first planarization insulating layer 141. This arrangement mayreduce a resistance as compared to a comparable arrangement without theaforementioned lower additional voltage line connected to the drivingvoltage line PL via the through hole.

A second planarization insulating layer 142 may cover the drivingvoltage line PL. The first and second planarization insulating layers141 and 142 may include an organic material. The organic material mayinclude a general-purpose polymer such as an imide-based polymer,polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA) or polystyrene (PS), or polymerderivatives having a phenol-based group, an acryl-based polymer, an arylether-based polymer, an amide-based polymer, a fluorine-based polymer, ap-xylene-based polymer, a vinyl alcohol-based polymer, or a blendthereof.

The OLED 300 includes the pixel electrode 310, an opposite electrode330, and an intermediate layer 320 disposed between the pixel electrode310 and the opposite electrode 330 and including an emission layer. TheOLED 300 may be disposed on the second planarization insulating layer142.

A pixel-defining layer 150 may be disposed on the pixel electrode 310.The pixel-defining layer 150 defines a pixel by having an openingcorresponding to each pixel. For example, each opening may expose atleast a central portion of the pixel electrode 310. Also, thepixel-defining layer 150 may prevent arcing, etc. from occurring betweenthe pixel electrode 310 and the opposite electrode 330 by increasing adistance between the edge of the pixel electrode 310 and the oppositeelectrode 330. The pixel-defining layer 150 may include, for example, anorganic material such as PI or hexamethyldisiloxane (HMDSO).

The pixel electrode 310 may be electrically connected to a pixel circuitincluding, for example, the first and second TFTs T1 and T2 and thestorage capacitor Cst through a first connection metal CM1 and a secondconnection metal CM2.

The intermediate layer 320 may include a low molecular or polymermaterial. In the case where the intermediate layer 320 includes a lowmolecular material, the intermediate layer 320 may have a structure inwhich a hole injection layer (HIL), a hole transport layer (HTL), anemission layer (EML), an electron transport layer (ETL), an electroninjection layer (EIL), etc. are stacked in a single or a compositeconfiguration, and may include various organic materials such as copperphthalocyanine (CuPc), N,N′-Di(naphthalene-1-yl)-N,N′-diphenyl-benzidine(NPB), and tris-8-hydroxyquinoline aluminum (Alq3). These layers may beformed by vacuum evaporation.

In the case where the intermediate layer 320 includes a polymermaterial, the intermediate layer 320 may generally have a structureincluding an HTL and an EML. In this case, the HTL may include PEDOT,and the EML may include a polymer material such as polyphenylenevinylene (PPV)-based material and a polyfluorene-based material. Thestructure of the intermediate layer 320 is not limited to theabove-described structure and may have various structures. For example,the intermediate layer 320 may include a layer having one body over aplurality of pixel electrodes 310 or may include a layer patterned torespectively correspond to the plurality of pixel electrodes 310.

The opposite electrode 330 may cover the display area DA. For example,the opposite electrode 330 may have one body over a plurality of OLEDs300.

Since the OLED 300 may be easily damaged by external moisture or oxygen,the OLED 300 may be protected by being covered by an encapsulation layer400. The encapsulation layer 400 may cover the display area DA andextend to the outside of the display area DA. The encapsulation layer400 includes at least one inorganic insulating layer and at least oneorganic insulating layer. For example, the encapsulation layer 400 mayinclude a first inorganic encapsulation layer 410, an organicencapsulation layer 420, and a second inorganic encapsulation layer 430.

The first inorganic encapsulation layer 410 may cover the oppositeelectrode 330 and include SiOx, SiNx, and/or SiON. Other layers such asa capping layer may be disposed between the first inorganicencapsulation layer 410 and the opposite electrode 330. Since the firstinorganic encapsulation layer 410 runs along a structure thereunder, anupper surface of the first inorganic encapsulation layer 410 is notplanarized. The organic encapsulation layer 420 covering the firstinorganic encapsulation layer 410 may have a flat upper surface at leastcorresponding to the display area DA. The organic encapsulation layer420 may include at least one of PET, PEN, PC, PI, polyethylenesulfonate, polyoxymethylene (POM), PAR, and HMDSO. The second inorganicencapsulation layer 430 may cover the organic encapsulation layer 420and include SiOx, SiNx, and/or SiON.

An optical film 500 may be disposed on the encapsulation layer 400. Theoptical film 500 may include a polarization plate. The polarizationplate may reduce external light reflection, and a layer including ablack matrix and a color filter may be used instead of the polarizationplate. Various functional layers including touch electrode layers may befurther provided on the encapsulation layer 400.

Referring to the non-display area NDA around the bending area BA of FIG.3, the buffer layer 110, the gate insulating layer 120, and theinterlayer insulating layer 130 disposed over the substrate 100 may becollectively referred to as inorganic insulating layer IL. The inorganicinsulating layer IL has an opening OP corresponding to the bending areaBA. As used herein, the term “correspond” may be understood asoverlapping in the vertical direction, as illustrated. The buffer layer110, the gate insulating layer 120, and the interlayer insulating layer130 may respectively have an opening 110 a, an opening 120 a, and anopening 130 a corresponding to the bending area BA. The opening 130 a ofthe interlayer insulating layer 130 may include an opening 131 a and anopening 132 a respectively of the first interlayer insulating layer 131and the second interlayer insulating layer 132. Though FIG. 3illustrates that the opening OP passes through the inorganic insulatinglayer IL, the present invention is not limited thereto. For example,according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention, theinorganic insulating layer IL may have a recess (or a groove)corresponding to the bending area BA. The recess may mean a portionformed by removing a portion of the inorganic insulating layer IL in adepth direction and leaving a portion of the inorganic insulating layerIL. For example, the gate insulating layer 120 and the interlayerinsulating layer 130 may respectively have the openings 120 a and 130 acorresponding to the bending area BA, but the buffer layer 110 maycontinuously extend over the first area 1A, the bending area BA, and thesecond area 2A without having an opening.

The area of the opening OP may be greater than the area of the bendingarea BA. FIG. 3 illustrates that a width OW of the opening OP is greaterthan the width of the bending area BA. The area of the opening OP may bedefined as the area of a smallest opening among the openings 110 a, 120a, and 130 a respectively of the buffer layer 110, the gate insulatinglayer 120, and the interlayer insulating layer 130. FIG. 3 illustratesthat the area of the opening OP of the inorganic insulating layer IL isdefined by the area of the opening 110 a of the buffer layer 110. ThoughFIG. 3 illustrates that an inner surface of the opening 110 a of thebuffer layer 110 coincides with an inner surface of the opening 120 a ofthe gate insulating layer 120, the present invention is not limitedthereto. For example, the area of the opening 130 a of the interlayerinsulating layer 130 may be greater than the area of the opening 120 aof the gate insulating layer 120.

The organic layer 160 may fill the opening OP of the inorganicinsulating layer IL. The organic layer 160 at least partially overlapsthe bending area BA, and at least a portion of the organic layer 160 maybe disposed inside the opening OP of the inorganic insulating layer IL.The organic layer 160 may extend from the bending area BA to anon-bending area, for example, a portion of the first and second areas1A and 2A adjacent to the bending area BA.

The organic layer 160 may include at least one of acryl, metacrylic,polyester, polyethylene, polypropylene, PET, PEN, PC, PI,polyethylenesulfonate, polyoxymethylene, PAR, and HMDSO.

The inner wiring 210 is disposed in the first area 1A of the non-displayarea NDA, and the outer wiring 220 is disposed in the second area 2A.

The inner wiring 210 may be electrically connected to a pixel of thedisplay area DA. For example, the inner wiring 210 may be electricallyconnected to the first and second TFTs T1 and T2 and/or a wiring such asthe data line DL, and the pixel circuit is electrically connected to thedisplay element. The inner wiring 210 may partially extend to thedisplay area DA, or may be electrically connected to a conductivelayer/wiring outside the display area DA.

The outer wiring 220 may be connected to a wiring disposed in a layerdifferent from the layer of the outer wiring 220 in the non-display areaNDA and/or the terminal unit 20 (see FIG. 1) of the non-display areaNDA. Alternatively, one end of the outer wiring 220 may be exposed tothe outside and connected to an electronic device, or the flexible film60, etc. described with reference to FIG. 1.

The inner and outer wirings 210 and 220 spaced apart from each otherwith the bending area BA therebetween may be connected to the conductivelayer 230. FIG. 3 illustrates a case where the conductive layer 230 is abridge wiring which crosses the bending area BA and electricallyconnects the inner wiring 210 to the outer wiring 220. The conductivelayer 230, which is a bridge wiring, may be disposed in the bending areaBA and the first and second areas 1A and 2A adjacent to the bending areaBA.

The conductive layer 230 is disposed in a layer different from the layerincluding the inner and outer wirings 210 and 220 with the interlayerinsulating layer 130 therebetween. A portion of the conductive layer 230corresponding to the bending area BA may be disposed on the organiclayer 160, and a portion of the conductive layer 230 corresponding tothe first and second areas 1A and 2A may be disposed in an organicthrough hole 160 h of the organic layer 160.

The organic through hole 160 h may at least partially overlap a firstcontact hole CNT1 of the interlayer insulating layer 130 and expose thefirst contact hole CNT1. Opposite ends of the conductive layer 230 aredisposed to correspond to the organic through hole 160 h in the firstand second areas 1A and 2A, and may be connected to the inner and outerwirings 210 and 220 through the first contact hole CNT1. FIG. 3illustrates a case where two first contact holes CNT1 are disposedinside one organic through hole 160 h, however, the present invention isnot limited thereto. For example, number of first contact holes CNT1provided to the organic through hole 160 h may differ.

FIG. 3 illustrates a display device in an un-bent configuration, forconvenience of description, the substrate 100, etc. of the displaydevice according to the present disclosure may be bent in the bendingarea BA as illustrated in FIG. 2. For example, as illustrated in FIG. 3,the display device is manufactured while the substrate 100 isapproximately flat, and after that the display device isso-manufactured, the substrate 100 is bent in the bending area BA andmay have the shape illustrated in FIG. 2. While the substrate 100, etc.are bent in the bending area BA, tensile stress may be applied toelements disposed inside the bending area BA.

To prevent a crack from occurring in the inorganic insulating layer ILdue to the aforementioned tensile stress, an opening OP may be formed ina region of the inorganic insulating layer IL corresponding to thebending area BA. As illustrated in FIG. 3, in the case where theconductive layer 230 extends across the bending area BA, a crack mayoccur in the conductive layer 230 or a defect such as disconnection ofthe conductive layer 230 may occur during the bending process. Toprevent this, the conductive layer 230 may include a material havingrelatively high elongation. Also, efficiency of electric signal transfermay be increased or a defect occurrence rate during a manufacturingprocess may be reduced in a display device by forming the inner andouter wirings 210 and 220 of the first and second areas 1A and 2A withmaterials having electric/physical properties different from those ofthe conductive layer 230.

For example, the inner and outer wirings 210 and 220 may include Mo, andthe conductive layer 230 may include Al. The inner and outer wirings 210and 220 and the conductive layer 230 may be a single layer or multiplelayers. The conductive layer 230 may be a three-layer configuration ofTi/Al/Ti and may be multiple layers in which a thickness of Ti is 0.15times the thickness of Al or less, for example, Ti has a thickness of0.12 times the thickness of Al or less.

FIG. 3 illustrates a case where the inner and outer wirings 210 and 220are formed during a process of forming the first and second gateelectrodes G1 and G2, and may include the same material as that of thefirst and second gate electrodes G1 and G2. The conductive layer 230 maybe formed during a process of forming the data line DL and may includethe same material as that of the data line DL. Therefore, the inorganicprotective layer PVX covering the data line DL may cover the conductivelayer 230. In this case, a portion of the inorganic protective layer PVXcorresponding to the bending area BA may be removed by an etchingprocess, etc. Therefore, a problem which may occur in the case where theinorganic protective layer PVX remains (for example, a crack may occurin the inorganic protective layer PVX while the substrate 100, etc. arebent around the bending area BA, or the relevant crack propagatesthrough the inorganic protective layer PVX and damages other layers,etc.) may be prevented or minimized.

A portion of the inorganic protective layer PVX corresponding to thebending area BA has been removed. The inorganic protective layer PVX maycover at least a portion of the conductive layer 230 in the first andsecond areas 1A and 2A. A distance “d” between an end of the inorganicprotective layer PVX disposed in the first area 1A and an end of theinorganic protective layer PVX disposed in the second area 2A may begreater than the width of the bending area BA to prevent occurrence andpropagation of the crack. The distance “d” between the ends of theinorganic protective layer PVX with the bending area BA therebetween maybe substantially equal to, or greater than, the width OW of the openingOP of the inorganic insulating layer IL. However, the instant inventionis not particularly limited to this configuration. For example, thedistance “d” may be a little less than the width OW.

The inorganic protective layer PVX may cover a portion of the conductivelayer 230 corresponding to the first contact hole CNT1 in the first area1A. Referring to the enlarged portion of FIG. 3, the inorganicprotective layer PVX may be disposed to correspond to a contact portion“ca” between the inner wiring 210 and the conductive layer 230, an innerwall 130 s of the interlayer insulating layer 130 surrounding the firstcontact hole CNT1, and a portion of an upper surface 130 u of theinterlayer insulating layer 130 connected to the inner wall 130 s. FIG.3 illustrates that the inorganic protective layer PVX is disposed on theconductive layer 230 and covers not only a portion of the conductivelayer 230 corresponding to the first contact hole CNT1 but also otherportions thereof.

Similarly, the inorganic protective layer PVX may cover a portion of theconductive layer 230 corresponding to the first contact hole CNT1 in thesecond area 2A. The inorganic protective layer PVX may be disposed tocorrespond to a contact portion between the outer wiring 220 and theconductive layer 230, an inner wall of the interlayer insulating layer130 surrounding the first contact hole CNT1, and a portion of an uppersurface of the interlayer insulating layer 130 connected to the innerwall. FIG. 3 illustrates that the inorganic protective layer PVX isdisposed on the conductive layer 230 and covers not only a portion ofthe conductive layer 230 corresponding to the first contact hole CNT1but also other portions thereof.

In the case where the inorganic protective layer PVX does not cover atleast a portion of the conductive layer 230 and is removed, for example,during an etching process of completely removing the inorganicprotective layer PVX in the bending area BA, and the first and secondareas 1A and 2A of the non-display area NDA and a subsequent process,damage and/or fine cracks may easily occur on an upper portion of theconductive layer 230. Damage and/or fine cracks may tend to occur at astep difference around the first contact hole CNT1 which is relativelyfragile. Moisture transmission may occur through damage and/or a finecrack, and metal oxide (e.g. AlOx) is generated around the stepdifference in the vicinity of the first contact hole CNT1 and reduces aresistance of the conductive layer 230, and the inner and outer wirings210 and 220 may be disconnected around the metal oxide. However,according to exemplary embodiments of the present invention, since theinorganic protective layer PVX covers at least a portion of theconductive layer 230 corresponding to the first contact hole CNT1,occurrence of the damage and/or fine cracks, moisture transmission, etc.may be prevented.

A protective layer 600 may be disposed on the conductive layer 230.Though the first and second planarization insulating layers 141 and 142,and the pixel-defining layer 150 in the display area DA may extend tothe non-display area NDA and form the protective layer 600 covering theconductive layer 230. However, the invention is not limited to thisparticular configuration. For example, the protective layer 600 coveringthe conductive layer 230 in the non-display area NDA may include atleast one of the first and second planarization insulating layers 141and 142 and the pixel-defining layer 150, or may be formed during aseparate process (e.g. coating and curing a material in liquid or pasteform) by using an organic material different from those of the first andsecond planarization insulating layers 141 and 142 and thepixel-defining layer 150.

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view of a display device according to anexemplary embodiment of the present invention. In FIG. 4, same referencenumerals as those of the configuration of FIG. 3 represent the samemembers. Differences are mainly described below.

Referring to FIG. 4, the inner and outer wirings 210 and 220 aresimultaneously formed during a process of forming the second storagecapacitor plate CE2 of the storage capacitor Cst, and may include thesame material as that of the second storage capacitor plate CE2. Forexample, the inner and outer wirings 210 and 220, and the second storagecapacitor plate CE2 may include Mo.

The inner and outer wirings 210 and 220 may contact the conductive layer230 via the first contact hole CNT1, and at least a portion of the uppersurface of the conductive layer 230 may be covered by the inorganicprotective layer PVX as described above.

FIGS. 3 and 4 illustrate the driving voltage line PL is disposed on thefirst planarization insulating layer 141 and is covered by the secondplanarization insulating layer 142, however, the present invention isnot limited to this particular configuration. For example, the drivingvoltage line PL may be formed in the same layer as that of the data lineDL during the same process. In this case, the second planarizationinsulating layer 142 may be omitted, and the pixel electrode 310 may beconnected to the second TFT T2 through the first connection metal CM1.

FIGS. 3 and 4 illustrate that the inner wiring 210 and the outer wiring220 are disposed in the same layer, however, the present invention isnot limited thereto. For example, the inner wiring 210 may be disposedon the gate insulating layer 120 as illustrated in FIG. 3, and the outerwiring 220 may be disposed on the first interlayer insulating layer 131as illustrated in FIG. 4. Alternatively, the inner wiring 210 may bedisposed on the first interlayer insulating layer 131 as illustrated inFIG. 4, and the outer wiring 220 may be disposed on the gate insulatinglayer 120 as illustrated in FIG. 3.

FIG. 5 is a plan view of a portion of a wiring unit of a display deviceaccording to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention, and maycorrespond to a portion V of FIG. 1. FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view ofthe wiring unit taken along a line VI-VI′ of FIG. 5, and FIG. 7 is across-sectional view of the wiring unit taken along a line VII-VII′ ofFIG. 5.

Referring to FIG. 5, the inner wirings 210 may extend in an X-directionand may be spaced apart from each other in a Y-direction. Hereinafter,for convenience of description, some of the inner wirings 210 isreferred to as a first inner wiring 211, and the rest of the innerwirings 210 is referred to as a second inner wiring 212. A conductivelayer of the conductive layers 230 contacting the first inner wiring 211is referred to as a first conductive layer 231, and a conductive layerof the conductive layers 230 contacting the second inner wiring 212 isreferred to as a second conductive layer 232. Also, a through hole ofthe organic through holes 160 h corresponding to a contact of the firstinner wiring 211 and the first conductive layer 231 is referred to as afirst organic through hole 160 h 1, and a through hole of the organicthrough holes 160 h corresponding to a contact of the second innerwiring 212 and the second conductive layer 232 is referred to as asecond organic through hole 160 h 2. As described above with referenceto FIGS. 3 and 4, the first and second conductive layers 231 and 232illustrated in FIG. 5 may be bridge wirings extending across the bendingarea BA and electrically connecting the inner wiring 210 to the outerwiring 220.

A contact region of the first inner wiring 211 and the first conductivelayer 231, and a contact region of the second inner wiring 212 and thesecond conductive layer 232 may be alternately disposed. For example,the contact region of the first inner wiring 211 and the firstconductive layer 231, and the contact region of the second inner wiring212 and the second conductive layer 232 may be alternately disposed in azigzag form. Therefore, a distance between the first inner wiring 211and the second inner wiring 212 may be reduced and so space may be usedmore efficiently.

The organic layer 160 at least partially overlaps the first and secondinner wirings 211 and 212 and the first and second conductive layers 231and 232, and includes the first and second organic through holes 160 h 1and 160 h 2 for providing contact between the first inner wiring 211 andthe first conductive layer 231, and between the second inner wiring 212and the second conductive layer 232. The first organic through hole 160h 1 corresponds to an overlapping portion of the first inner wiring 211and the first conductive layer 231, and the second organic through hole160 h 2 corresponds to an overlapping portion of the second inner wiring212 and the second conductive layer 232. The first and second organicthrough holes 160 h 1 and 160 h 2 may be shifted and disposed in azigzag form.

The inorganic protective layer PVX may correspond to the first andsecond organic through holes 160 h 1 and 160 h 2. The inorganicprotective layer PVX may cover the contact regions of the first andsecond inner wirings 211 and 212, and the first and second conductivelayers 231 and 232. According to an exemplary embodiment of the presentdisclosure, the inorganic protective layer PVX may partially overlap theorganic layer 160. For example, the inorganic protective layer PVX mayoverlap at least a portion of the first and second inner wirings 211 and212 and the first and second conductive layers 231 and 232.

Referring to FIGS. 5 and 6, the interlayer insulating layer 130including the first contact hole CNT1, for example, the secondinterlayer insulating layer 132 is disposed on the first inner wiring211. The organic layer 160 may be disposed on the interlayer insulatinglayer 130 and may include the first organic through hole 160 h 1 formedby removing a portion of the organic layer 160 corresponding to thefirst contact hole CNT1. A portion of the first conductive layer 231corresponding to the first organic through hole 160 h 1 may be connectedto the first inner wiring 211 through the first contact hole CNT1.

Likewise, the second interlayer insulating layer 132 including the firstcontact hole CNT1 is disposed on the second inner wiring 212. Theorganic layer 160 may be disposed on the interlayer insulating layer 130and may include the second organic through hole 160 h 2 formed byremoving a portion of the organic layer 160 corresponding to the firstcontact hole CNT1. A portion of the second conductive layer 232corresponding to the second organic through hole 160 h 2 may beconnected to the second inner wiring 212 through the first contact holeCNT1

The first organic through hole 160 h 1 may be spaced apart by a presetinterval from an end of the first inner wiring 211. For example, aspaced distance between a lower end of the first organic through hole160 h 1 and an end of the first inner wiring 211 may be about 4 μm toabout 8 μm. Similarly, a lower end of the second organic through hole160 h 2 may be spaced apart by the above distance from an end of thesecond inner wiring 212.

The inorganic protective layer PVX may cover a portion of the firstconductive layer 231 and a portion of the second conductive layer 232corresponding to the first contact hole CNT1. Therefore, damage and/or afine crack occurrence of the first and second conductive layers 231 and232 and moisture transmission may be prevented as described above withreference to FIG. 3.

Referring to FIGS. 5 and 7, the inorganic protective layer PVX mayextend to cover the first conductive layer 231 on the organic layer 160,and a width W1 in the Y-direction (or a direction crossing an extensiondirection of the first conductive layer) may be greater than a width W2of the first conductive layer 231. Opposite edges of the inorganicprotective layer PVX in the Y-direction may contact an upper surface ofthe organic layer 160.

Since the width W1 of the inorganic protective layer PVX is less than awidth W3 of the organic layer 160 as illustrated in FIG. 7, a portion ofthe upper surface of the organic layer 160 may be exposed to theoutside. The portion of the upper surface of the organic layer 160 notcovered by the inorganic protective layer PVX may be an out-gassing paththrough which a material included in the organic layer 160 evaporatesand is externally discharged during a curing process of the organiclayer 160 in a manufacturing process of a display device.

FIG. 5 illustrates a case where the first and second inner wirings 211and 212 are formed during the same process as the second storagecapacitor plate CE2 and include the same material as that of the secondstorage capacitor plate CE2. Here, the first and second conductivelayers 231 and 232 are formed during the same process as the data lineDL and include the same material as that of the data line DL, asdescribed above with reference to FIG. 4. However, the present inventionis not limited to this particular configuration. For example, the firstand second inner wirings 211 and 212 may be formed during the sameprocess as the first and second gate electrodes G1 and G2 and/or thefirst storage capacitor plate CE1 and include the same material as thatof the first and second gate electrodes G1 and G2 and/or the firststorage capacitor plate CE1 as described above with reference to FIG. 3.

FIGS. 5 to 7 describe a structure in which the inner wiring 210 isconnected to the conductive layer 230. However, such a structure isequally applicable to a connection structure of the outer wiring 220 andthe conductive layer 230 described with reference to FIGS. 3 and 4.

FIG. 8 is a plan view illustrating a portion of a wiring unit of adisplay device according to an exemplary embodiment of the presentinvention, and FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view of the wiring unit takenalong a line IX-IX′ of FIG. 8. The arrangement of the first and secondinner wirings 211 and 212 and the arrangement of the inorganicprotective layer PVX of the display device of FIGS. 8 and 9 aredifferent from that described above with reference to FIGS. 5 to 7. InFIGS. 8 and 9, same reference numerals as those of FIG. 5 may representthe same or similar elements. For convenience of description,differences between corresponding elements are mainly described below,and it may be assumed that other details are at least similar to thoseof corresponding elements that have already been described.

Referring to FIGS. 8 and 9, the first and second inner wirings 211 and212 may be respectively disposed in different layers. For example, thefirst inner wiring 211 may be disposed between the first interlayerinsulating layer 131 and the second interlayer insulating layer 132 andmay include the same material as that of the second storage capacitorplate CE2 (see FIGS. 3 and 4). The second inner wiring 212 may bedisposed between the first interlayer insulating layer 131 and the gateinsulating layer 120 and may include the same material as that of thefirst and second gate electrodes G1 and G2 (see FIGS. 3 and 4) and/orthe first storage capacitor plate CE1 (see FIGS. 3 and 4). In the casewhere the first and second inner wirings 211 and 212 respectively andalternately disposed in different layers, a distance between the firstand second inner wirings 211 and 212 may be further reduced.

The inorganic protective layer PVX may cover the contact region of thefirst inner wiring 211 and the first conductive layer 231 and thecontact region of the second inner wiring 212 and the second conductivelayer 232 and so prevent damage and/or a fine crack from occurring inthe first and second conductive layers 231 and 232 at a step differencearound the first contact hole CNT1 as described above.

The inorganic protective layer PVX may at least partially overlap tocover one of the first and second inner wirings 211 and 212, and may atleast partially overlap to cover one of the first and second conductivelayers 231 and 232. FIG. 8 illustrates a case where the inorganicprotective layer PVX at least partially overlaps a portion of the firstinner wiring 211 and the first conductive layer 231. A relation betweenthe width W1 of the inorganic protective layer PVX overlapping the firstconductive layer 231, the width W3 of a portion of the organic layer160, and the width W2 of the first conductive layer 231 is the same asthe relation described above with reference to FIG. 7.

The second inner wiring 212 is covered by the first and secondinterlayer insulating layers 131 and 132 among the inorganic insulatinglayers IL. On the contrary, the first inner wiring 211 is covered byonly the second interlayer insulating layer 132. To complement apassivation function, which may be relatively insufficient, theinorganic protective layer PVX may at least partially overlap the firstinner wiring 211 among the first and second inner wirings 211 and 212 asillustrated in FIG. 8.

According to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention, theinorganic protective layer PVX might not overlap the first and secondinner wirings 211 and 212. When the area of the inorganic protectivelayer PVX covering the organic layer 160 increases, a gas which is notdischarged and remains during the curing process of the organic layer160 may transform the organic layer 160 or layers on the organic layer160. Therefore, if a passivation function is sufficiently secured withonly the second interlayer insulating layer 132, the inorganicprotective layer PVX may cover only a portion corresponding to contactregions of the first and second inner wirings 211 and 212 and the firstand second conductive layers 231 and 232, and might not cover the firstand second inner wirings 211 and 212.

FIGS. 8 and 9 illustrate a case where the first inner wiring 211 isdisposed between the first interlayer insulating layer 131 and thesecond interlayer insulating layer 132, and the second inner wiring 212is disposed between the first interlayer insulating layer 131 and thegate insulating layer 120. However, the present invention is not limitedthereto. For example, the first inner wiring 211 may be disposed betweenthe first interlayer insulating layer 131 and the gate insulating layer120 and may include the same material as that of the first and secondgate electrodes G1 and G2 and/or the first storage capacitor plate CE1.Also, the second inner wiring 212 may be disposed between the firstinterlayer insulating layer 131 and the second interlayer insulatinglayer 132 and may include the same material as that of the secondstorage capacitor plate CE2 (see FIGS. 3 and 4).

Though FIGS. 8 and 9 illustrate a structure in which the inner wiring210 is connected to the conductive layer 230, such a structure isequally applicable to a connection structure of the outer wiring 220 andthe conductive layer 230 described above with reference to FIGS. 3 and4.

FIG. 10 is a cross-sectional view of a display device according to anexemplary embodiment of the present invention. In FIG. 10, samereference numerals as those described above with respect to FIG. 3 mayrepresent the same or similar elements. It may be assumed that to theextent that details are not provided, those details may be the same asor similar to details described elsewhere in the disclosure.

Referring to FIG. 10, the inner wiring 210 disposed in the first area 1Amay be connected to a conductive layer 230A through the first contacthole CNT1 formed in the interlayer insulating layer 130, and the outerwiring 220 disposed in the second area 2A may be connected to theconductive layer 230A through the contact hole CNT1 formed in theinterlayer insulating layer 130.

The conductive layer 230A is disposed in a layer different from thelayer in which the inner and outer wirings 210 and 220 are disposed. Theinner and outer wirings 210 and 220 are disposed under the interlayerinsulating layer 130, and the conductive layer 230A may be disposed onthe interlayer insulating layer 130. The inner and outer wirings 210 and220 may be formed during the same process as the first and second gateelectrodes G1 and G2 and/or the first storage capacitor plate CE1, andmay include the same material as that of the first and second gateelectrodes G1 and G2 and/or the first storage capacitor plate CE1. Theconductive layer 230A may be formed during a process of forming the dataline DL and may include the same material as that of the data line DL.

The conductive layer 230A is an island type layer and may be disposed inthe first and second areas 1A and 2A. The conductive layer 230 describedwith reference to FIG. 3 is a bridge wiring crossing the bending areaBA, but the conductive layer 230A of FIG. 10 may correspond to an islandelectrode layer. The conductive layer 230A may correspond to the organicthrough hole 160 h.

The organic through hole 160 h may at least partially overlap the firstcontact hole CNT1 of the interlayer insulating layer 130 and may exposethe first contact hole CNT1. The conductive layers 230A may correspondto the organic through holes 160 h in the first and second areas 1A and2A, and may be respectively connected to the inner and outer wirings 210and 220 through the first contact holes CNT1.

The inorganic protective layer PVX may cover a portion of the conductivelayer 230A corresponding to the first contact hole CNT1. Referring to anenlarged portion of FIG. 10, the inorganic protective layer PVX maycorrespond to a contact portion “ca” of the inner wiring 210 and theconductive layer 230A, the inner wall 130 s of the interlayer insulatinglayer 130 surrounding the first contact hole CNT1, and a portion of theupper surface 130 u of the interlayer insulating layer 130 connected tothe inner wall 130 s. A width W4 of the inorganic protective layer PVXoverlapping the first contact hole CNT1 may be greater than a width W5of an upper portion of the first contact hole CNT1. As described above,since the inorganic protective layer PVX covers a step difference aroundthe first contact hole CNT1, problems such as occurrence of damageand/or a fine crack in the conductive layer 230A at the step difference,generation of a metal oxide (e.g. AlOx) around the step difference dueto generation of moisture transmission, or reduction in a resistance ofthe conductive layer 230 may be prevented. The inorganic protectivelayer PVX, the first contact hole CNT1, and a structure of surroundingsthereof illustrated in FIG. 10 are equally applicable to the firstcontact hole CNT1 of the outer wiring 220 and surroundings thereof.

An additional conductive layer 240 may electrically connect the innerwiring 210 of the first area 1A to the outer wiring 220 of the secondarea 2A. The additional conductive layer 240 may be a bridge wiringextending across the bending area BA and electrically connecting theinner and outer wirings 210 and 220.

The additional conductive layer 240 may include a material havingelectric/physical properties different from those of the inner and outerwirings 210 and 220. For example, the inner and outer wirings 210 and220 may include Mo, and the additional conductive layer 240 may includeAl. The additional conductive layer 240 may be a single layer ormultiple layers. In an exemplary embodiment of the present invention,the additional conductive layer 240 may be a three-layer arrangement ofTi/Al/Ti and may be multiple layers in which a thickness of Ti is 0.15times the thickness of Al or less, for example, Ti has a thickness of0.12 times the thickness of Al or less, but the present invention is notlimited to this particular configuration.

The additional conductive layer 240 may be connected to the conductivelayer 230A through the second contact hole CNT2 passing through theinorganic protective layer PVX. The inner and outer wirings 210 and 220may respectively contact the conductive layer 230A through the firstcontact holes CNT1 of the interlayer insulating layer 130, and theadditional conductive layer 240 may contact the conductive layer 230Athrough the second contact hole CNT2 of the inorganic protective layerPVX, and so the inner and outer wirings 210 and 220 may be electricallyconnected.

Since the inorganic protective layer PVX should cover a portion of theconductive layer 230A corresponding to the first contact hole CNT1 inorder to prevent occurrence of damage and/or a fine crack as describedabove, the second contact hole CNT2 for providing contact between theconductive layer 230A and the additional conductive layer 240 may bespaced apart by a preset interval Δd such that the second contact holeCNT2 does not overlap the first contact hole CNT1.

The first planarization insulating layer 141, which is an organicinsulating layer, may be disposed under the additional conductive layer240. For example, the first planarization insulating layer 141 of thedisplay area DA may extend to the non-display area NDA and may bedisposed under the additional conductive layer 240. The firstplanarization insulating layer 141 may include a hole 141 h at leastpartially overlapping the second contact hole CNT2 of the inorganicprotective layer PVX. FIG. 10 illustrates a case where a plurality ofholes 141 h of the first planarization insulating layer 141 are disposedinside the organic through hole 160 h of the organic layer 160.

A protective layer 600A may be disposed on the additional conductivelayer 240. Though the second planarization insulating layer 142 and thepixel-defining layer 150 may extend to the non-display area NDA and formthe protective layer 600A, the present invention is not limited to thisparticular arrangement. For example, the protective layer 600A coveringthe additional conductive layer 240 in the non-display area NDA mayinclude either the second planarization insulating layer 142 or thepixel-defining layer 150, or the protective layer 600A may be formedduring a separate process (e.g. coating and curing a material in liquidor paste form) by using an organic material different from those of thesecond planarization insulating layer 142 and the pixel-defining layer150.

FIG. 11 is a cross-sectional view of a display device according to anexemplary embodiment of the present invention. In FIG. 11, samereference numerals as those described with reference to FIG. 10 mayrepresent corresponding elements here and any omitted details may beassumed to be at least similar to details of corresponding elementsdescribed elsewhere in the specification.

Referring to FIG. 11, the inner and outer wirings 210 and 220 aresimultaneously formed during a process of forming the second storagecapacitor plate CE2 of the storage capacitor Cst, and may include thesame material as that of the second storage capacitor plate CE2. Forexample, the inner and outer wirings 210 and 220, and the second storagecapacitor plate CE2 may include Mo.

The inner and outer wirings 210 and 220 may be connected to theconductive layer 230A through the first contact hole CNT1, at least aportion of the upper surface of the conductive layer 230A may be coveredby the inorganic protective layer PVX, and the additional conductivelayer 240 may be connected to the conductive layer 230A through thesecond contact hole CNT2 as described above.

Though FIGS. 10 and 11 illustrate that the inner wiring 210 and theouter wiring 220 are disposed in the same layer, the present inventionis not limited to this particular arrangement. For example, the innerwiring 210 may be disposed on the gate insulating layer 120 asillustrated in FIG. 10, and the outer wiring 220 may be disposed on thefirst interlayer insulating layer 131 as illustrated in FIG. 11.Alternatively, the inner wiring 210 may be disposed on the firstinterlayer insulating layer 131 as illustrated in FIG. 11, and the outerwiring 220 may be disposed on the gate insulating layer 120 asillustrated in FIG. 10.

FIG. 12 is a plan view of a portion of a wiring unit of a display deviceaccording to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 13is a cross-sectional view of the wiring unit taken along a lineXIII-XIII′ of FIG. 12, FIG. 14 is a cross-sectional view of the wiringunit taken along a line XIV-XIV′ of FIG. 12, and FIG. 15 is across-sectional view of the wiring unit taken along a line XV-XV′ ofFIG. 12.

Referring to FIG. 12, the first and second inner wirings 211 and 212 mayeach extend in the X-direction and may be spaced apart from each otherin the Y-direction. The first and second inner wirings 211 and 212 maybe disposed in the same layer or respectively disposed in differentlayers. FIG. 12 illustrates a case where the first and second innerwirings 211 and 212 are disposed in different layers.

The first inner wiring 211 may be connected to the conductive layer 230,and the second inner wiring 212 may be connected to the conductive layer230A and the additional conductive layer 240. The conductive layer 230connected to the first inner wiring 211 may be a bridge wiring extendingacross the bending area BA as described above with reference to FIGS. 3and 4. Therefore, the first inner wiring 211 may be electricallyconnected to the first outer wiring of the second area 2A correspondingto the first inner wiring 211 through the conductive layer 230.

The conductive layer 230A connected to the second inner wiring 212 is anisland electrode layer described with reference to FIGS. 10 and 11. Thesecond inner wiring 212 may be connected to the additional conductivelayer 240, which is a bridge wiring, through the conductive layer 230A.Therefore, the second inner wiring 212 may be electrically connected tothe second outer wiring of the second area 2A corresponding to thesecond inner wiring 212 through the additional conductive layer 240 bythe medium of the conductive layer 230A.

Referring to FIG. 13, the conductive layer 230 and the additionalconductive layer 240 may be disposed in different layers. For example,the conductive layer 230 may be formed during the same process as thedata line DL (see FIG. 3 or 4) and may include the same material as thatof the data line DL. The additional conductive layer 240 may be formedduring the same process as the driving voltage line PL (see FIG. 10 or11) and may include the same material as that of the driving voltageline PL. In the case where the conductive layer 230 and the additionalconductive layer 240, which are bridge wirings disposed adjacent to eachother, are disposed in different layers, a distance between theconductive layer 230 and the additional conductive layer 240 may bereduced.

Referring to FIG. 12 again, a contact region of the first inner wiring211 and the conductive layer 230, and a contact region of the secondinner wiring 212, the conductive layer 230A, and the additionalconductive layer 240 may be disposed in a zigzag form.

The organic layer 160 at least partially overlaps the first and secondinner wirings 211 and 212 and the conductive layers 230 and 230A andincludes the first and second organic through holes 160 h 1 and 160 h 2for providing contact between the first inner wiring 211 and theconductive layer 230 and between the second inner wiring 212 and theconductive layer 230A. The first organic through hole 160 h 1corresponds to an overlapping portion of the first inner wiring 211 andthe conductive layer 230, and the second organic through hole 160 h 2corresponds to the second inner wiring 212, the conductive layer 230A,and the additional conductive layer 240 and may be shifted and disposedin a zigzag form.

The inorganic protective layer PVX corresponds to the first and secondorganic through holes 160 h 1 and 160 h 2 and covers the contact regionof the first inner wiring 211 and the conductive layer 230 and thecontact region of the second inner wiring 212 and the additionalconductive layer 240. According to an exemplary embodiment of thepresent invention, the inorganic protective layer PVX may partiallyoverlap the organic layer 160. For example, the inorganic protectivelayer PVX may partially overlap at least one of the first and secondinner wirings 211 and 212, and/or the conductive layer 230. FIG. 12illustrates a case where the inorganic protective layer PVX covers thefirst inner wiring 211 among the first and second inner wirings 211 and212 and covers the conductive layer 230. The width W1 of the inorganicprotective layer PVX covering a portion of the conductive layer 230 maybe greater than the width W2 of the conductive layer 230 and may protectthe conductive layer 230. However, to facilitate out-gassing of amaterial included in the organic layer 160, the width W1 may be lessthan the width W3 of the organic layer 160 as described above.

As described above, the first inner wiring 211 may be directly connectedto the conductive layer 230, which is a bridge wiring, but the secondinner wiring 212 may be connected to the additional conductive layer240, which is a bridge wiring, through the conductive layer 230A.Hereinafter, each connection structure is described.

First, a connection structure of the first inner wiring 211 and theconductive layer 230 is described.

Referring to FIGS. 12 and 14, the first inner wiring 211 may be coveredby the second interlayer insulating layer 132, and a portion of thefirst inner wiring 211 may be exposed through the first contact holeCNT1. The organic layer 160 may be disposed on the interlayer insulatinglayer 130 and may include the first organic through hole 160 h 1 formedby removing a portion of the organic layer 160 corresponding to thefirst contact hole CNT1. The conductive layer 230 may be disposed on theorganic layer 160, and a portion of the conductive layer 230corresponding to the first organic through hole 160 h 1 may be connectedto the first inner wiring 211 through the first contact hole CNT1. Aportion of the conductive layer 230 corresponding to the first organicthrough hole 160 h 1 may be connected to the first inner wiring 211through the first contact hole CNT1. The first organic through hole 160h 1 may be spaced apart by a preset distance “d1” from an end of thefirst inner wiring 211.

Since the inorganic protective layer PVX covers a portion of theconductive layer 230 corresponding to the first contact hole CNT1,problems such as occurrence of damage and/or a fine crack, andgeneration of moisture transmission at surroundings of the first contacthole CNT1, for example, in a step difference at the surroundings of thefirst contact hole CNT1 may be prevented. The inorganic protective layerPVX is not provided to the bending area BA as described with referenceto FIG. 3.

The first inner wiring 211, the conductive layer 230, and a contactregion thereof may be covered by the protective layer 600A. The firstplanarization insulating layer 141 may be disposed below the protectivelayer 600A, for example, between the inorganic protective layer PVX andthe protective layer 600A. The first planarization insulating layer 141may be disposed under the additional conductive layer 240, which will bedescribed later with reference to FIG. 15. The first inner wiring 211,the conductive layer 230, and a contact region thereof may be entirelycovered by the first planarization insulating layer 141.

Next, the connection structure of the second inner wiring 212, theconductive layer 230A, and the additional conductive layer 240 isdescribed.

Referring to FIGS. 12 and 15, the second inner wiring 212 may bedisposed on the gate insulating layer 120 and may be connected to theconductive layer 230A through the first contact hole CNT1 formed in theinterlayer insulating layer 130.

The conductive layer 230A is an island type layer and may be disposed inonly a region corresponding to the second organic through hole 160 h 2.The area of the second organic through hole 160 h 2 may be greater thanthe area of the conductive layer 230A, and an edge of the conductivelayer 230A may be spaced apart by a preset interval “d2” from a lowerend of the second organic through hole 160 h 2.

The inorganic protective layer PVX may cover a portion of the uppersurface of the conductive layer 230A corresponding to the first contacthole CNT1 and so prevent occurrence of damage and/or a fine crack, andgeneration of moisture transmission at a portion of the conductive layer230A in a step difference around the first contact hole CNT1. Theinorganic protective layer PVX may at least partially overlap a portioncorresponding to the first contact hole CNT1, for example, a contactportion of the second inner wiring 212 and the conductive layer 230A,and an inner wall and a portion of the upper surface of the interlayerinsulating layer 130 as described above.

Since the inorganic protective layer PVX covers a portion of theconductive layer 230A corresponding to the first contact hole CNT1, thesecond contact hole CNT2 for providing contact between the conductivelayer 230A and the additional conductive layer 240 may be formed in aregion different from that of the first contact hole CNT1. For example,the second contact hole CNT2 may be spaced apart from the first contacthole CNT1. A lower edge of the second contact hole CNT2 adjacent to thefirst contact hole CNT1 may be spaced apart by an interval “Δd” of about1 μm to 2 μm from an upper edge of the first contact hole CNT1. The “Δd”may be understood as a spaced distance between the first and secondcontact holes CNT1 and CNT2 adjacent to each other, or as the width ofthe upper surface of the interlayer insulating layer 130 covered by theinorganic protective layer PVX around the first contact hole CNT1. Thefirst and second contact holes CNT1 and CNT2 may be alternately disposedin the X-direction with the preset interval “Δd”.

The first planarization insulating layer 141 is disposed on theinorganic protective layer PVX, and includes the hole 141 hcorresponding to the second contact hole CNT2. FIG. 15 illustrates acase where the first planarization insulating layer 141 includes aplurality of holes 141 h corresponding to the second organic throughhole 160 h 2.

Though FIGS. 12 to 15 illustrate a case where the first inner wiring 211is disposed on the first interlayer insulating layer 131, and the secondinner wiring 212 is disposed on the gate insulating layer 120, however,the present invention is not limited to this particular arrangement. Forexample, the first inner wiring 211 may be disposed on the gateinsulating layer 120, and the second inner wiring 212 may be disposed onthe first interlayer insulating layer 131. According to an exemplaryembodiment of the present invention, the first and second inner wirings211 and 212 may be disposed in the same layer and may include the samematerial.

FIGS. 12 to 15 describe a structure in which the inner wiring 210 isconnected to the conductive layer 230, or the conductive layer 230A andthe additional conductive layer 240. However, such a structure isequally applicable to a structure in which the outer wiring 220 isconnected to the conductive layer 230, or to the conductive layer 230Aand the additional conductive layer 240.

FIGS. 16 and 17 are cross-sectional views of a non-display area of adisplay device according to an exemplary embodiment of the presentinvention. In FIGS. 16 and 17, same reference numerals as those of theconfiguration of FIG. 10 may represent the same or similar elements andto the extent that details are not described, they may be assumed to beat least similar to the details of corresponding elements describedelsewhere in the disclosure.

Referring to FIG. 16, one hole 141 h may be provided to the firstplanarization insulating layer 141. For example, the hole 141 h of thefirst planarization insulating layer 141 may correspond to the organicthrough hole 160 h of the organic layer 160 and may be disposed toexpose the second contact hole CNT2. The hole 141 h of the firstplanarization insulating layer 141 may be less than the organic throughhole 160 h and so may provide increased step coverage of the additionalconductive layer 240 on the first planarization insulating layer 141.

Referring to FIG. 17, the first planarization insulating layer 141 (seeFIG. 10) might not be disposed under the additional conductive layer240.

FIGS. 16 and 17 illustrate a case where the inner wiring 210 and theouter wiring 220 are disposed in the same layer (e.g. the gateinsulating layer), however, the present invention is not limitedthereto. The inner wiring 210 and the outer wiring 220 may be disposedon the first interlayer insulating layer 131 as illustrated in FIG. 11.In an exemplary embodiment of the present invention, the inner wiring210 and the outer wiring 220 may be respectively disposed in differentlayers.

FIG. 18 is a plan view of a wiring unit of a display device according toan exemplary embodiment of the present invention. In FIG. 18, samereference numerals as those of FIG. 12 may represent the same or similarelements and to the extent that details are not described, they may beassumed to be at least similar to the details of corresponding elementsdescribed elsewhere in the disclosure.

FIG. 12 illustrates a structure in which one of the first and secondinner wirings 211 and 212 is connected to the conductive layer 230serving as a bridge wiring, and the other is connected to the additionalconductive layer 240 serving as a bridge wiring by the medium of theisland type conductive layer 230A. Here, both the first and second innerwirings 211 and 212 illustrated in FIG. 18 may be connected to theadditional conductive layer 240 by the medium of the conductive layer230A.

Referring to FIG. 18, the first and second inner wirings 211 and 212 maybe respectively connected to the first and second additional conductivelayers 241 and 242 serving as bridge wirings by the medium of the islandtype conductive layer 230A.

The first inner wiring 211, the island type conductive layer 230A, andthe first additional conductive layer 241 at least partially overlap oneanother in a region corresponding to the first organic through hole 160h 1. The first inner wiring 211 may be connected to the conductive layer230A through the first contact hole CNT1 of the interlayer insulatinglayer, and the conductive layer 230A may be connected to the firstadditional conductive layer 241 through the second contact hole CNT2 ofthe inorganic protective layer PVX.

Likewise, the second inner wiring 212, the island type conductive layer230A, and the second additional conductive layer 242 at least partiallyoverlap one another in a region corresponding to the second organicthrough hole 160 h 2. The second inner wiring 212 may be connected tothe conductive layer 230A through the first contact hole CNT1 of theinterlayer insulating layer, and the conductive layer 230A may beconnected to the second additional conductive layer 242 through thesecond contact hole CNT2 of the inorganic protective layer PVX.

The inorganic protective layer PVX may be disposed inside the first andsecond organic through holes 160 h 1 and 160 h 2 and may cover an upperportion of the conductive layer 230A corresponding to the first contacthole CNT1. In FIG. 18, the inorganic protective layer PVX may extend toat least partially overlap one of the first and second inner wirings 211and 212.

Since a contact structure of the first inner wiring 211, the conductivelayer 230A, and the first additional conductive layer 241 issubstantially the same as a contact structure of the second inner wiring211, the conductive layer 230A, and the second additional conductivelayer 242, and these structures are the same as those of the embodimentdescribed with reference to FIG. 15, and to the extent that details arenot described, they may be assumed to be at least similar to the detailsof corresponding elements described elsewhere in the disclosure.

According to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention, thecontact structure of the first inner wiring 211, the conductive layer230A, and the first additional conductive layer 241, and the contactstructure of the second inner wiring 211, the conductive layer 230A, andthe second additional conductive layer 242 may be modified to astructure in which one hole 141 h is provided to the first planarizationinsulating layer 141, or a structure in which the first planarizationinsulating layer 141 is omitted in the non-display area NDA as describedwith reference to FIGS. 16 and 17.

FIGS. 3 to 18 illustrate a structure in which the organic layer 160 isdisposed under the conductive layers 230 and 230A, however, the presentinvention is not limited thereto. If the conductive layer 230 and/or theadditional conductive layer 240, which are bridge wirings in the bendingarea BA, are flexible, which may endure stress while they are bent, theorganic layer 160 may be omitted.

In describing exemplary embodiments of the present disclosureillustrated in the drawings, specific terminology is employed for sakeof clarity. However, the present disclosure is not intended to belimited to the specific terminology so selected, and it is to beunderstood that each specific element includes all technical equivalentswhich operate in a similar manner.

1. A display device, comprising: a substrate comprising a first area, asecond area, and a bending area disposed between the first area and thesecond area; an inner wiring disposed in the first area; an outer wiringdisposed in the second area; an interlayer insulating layer covering theinner wiring and the outer wiring, and comprising a first contact hole;a conductive layer disposed on the interlayer insulating layer, andconnected to the inner wiring or the outer wiring through the firstcontact hole; and an inorganic protective layer covering at least aportion of the conductive layer and comprising an inorganic insulatingmaterial, wherein the inner wiring and the outer wiring are separatedfrom each other with the bending area therebetween, and an end of theinner wiring and an end of the outer wiring are respectively disposed atopposite sides of the bending area.
 2. The display device of claim 1,wherein the inorganic protective layer covers a portion of theconductive layer corresponding to the first contact hole.
 3. The displaydevice of claim 1, wherein the inorganic protective layer at leastpartially overlaps an inner wall of the interlayer insulating layersurrounding the first contact hole, and a portion of an upper surface ofthe interlayer insulating layer connected to the inner wall.
 4. Thedisplay device of claim 1, wherein the conductive layer extends acrossthe bending area and electrically connects the inner wiring to the outerwiring.
 5. The display device of claim 1, wherein the inorganicprotective layer further comprises a second contact hole exposing aportion of the conductive layer, and the display device furthercomprises an additional conductive layer disposed on the inorganicprotective layer and contacting the conductive layer through the secondcontact hole.
 6. The display device of claim 5, wherein the additionalconductive layer extends across the bending area and electricallyconnects the inner wiring to the outer wiring.
 7. The display device ofclaim 5, further comprising a planarization insulating layer disposedbetween the inorganic protective layer and the additional conductivelayer, and comprising a hole corresponding to the second contact hole.8. The display device of claim 5, wherein a lower edge of the secondcontact hole adjacent to the first contact hole is spaced apart from anupper edge of the first contact hole adjacent to the second contacthole.
 9. The display device of claim 1, wherein the interlayerinsulating layer comprises an opening corresponding to the bending area.10. The display device of claim 9, further comprising an organic layerdisposed on the interlayer insulating layer, at least a portion of theorganic layer being disposed in the opening of the interlayer insulatinglayer.
 11. The display device of claim 10, wherein the organic layercomprises an organic through hole corresponding to the first contacthole.
 12. The display device of claim 10, wherein the inorganicprotective layer extends from the first area or the second area to anupper surface of the organic layer and covers only a portion of theupper surface of the organic layer.
 13. A display device, comprising: adisplay area configured to display an image, the display area comprisinga plurality of pixels; a non-display area adjacent to the display area,the non-display area including a bending area; a wiring disposed in thenon-display area; an interlayer insulating layer comprising a firstcontact hole corresponding to the wiring and comprising an openingcorresponding to the bending area; a conductive layer disposed on theinterlayer insulating layer, and connected to the wiring through thefirst contact hole; and an inorganic protective layer disposed on theconductive layer, covering at least a portion of the conductive layercorresponding to the first contact hole, and comprising an inorganicinsulating material, wherein the wiring does not cross the bending area,wherein the wiring comprises an inner wiring and an outer wiringrespectively disposed at opposite sides of the bending area, and whereinan end of the inner wiring and an end of the outer wiring arerespectively disposed at opposite sides of the opening of the inorganicprotective layer.
 14. The display device of claim 13, wherein theinorganic protective layer at least partially overlaps an inner wall ofthe interlayer insulating layer surrounding the first contact hole, anda portion of an upper surface connected to the inner wall.
 15. Thedisplay device of claim 13, further comprising an organic layer, atleast a portion of the organic layer being disposed in the opening ofthe interlayer insulating layer.
 16. (canceled)
 17. The display deviceof claim 13, wherein the conductive layer crosses the bending area andelectrically connects the inner wiring to the outer wiring.
 18. Thedisplay device of claim 13, wherein the conductive layer at leastpartially overlaps the inner wiring or the outer wiring, and theconductive layer has an island shape.
 19. The display device of claim18, wherein the inorganic protective layer further comprises a secondcontact hole corresponding to the conductive layer.
 20. The displaydevice of claim 19, further comprising an additional conductive layerdisposed on the inorganic protective layer and connected to theconductive layer through the second contact hole.